Microbes mediating the sulfur cycle in the Atlantic ocean

Tag-sequencing of the aprA gene (encoding the alpha subunit of the adenosine-5- phosphosulfate (APS) reductase) was used to characterize the sulfate-reducing (SRP) and sulfur-oxidizing prokaryotes (SOP) community composition in different biogeographic provinces and through different depth zones of the Atlantic ocean. Our results suggest that sulfur-oxidizing bacteria are important players in the sulfur cycling of the meso- and bathypelagic Atlantic Ocean and that sulfur oxidation is only partially coupled with inorganic carbon fixation